A Watery Grave
by Deserttail
Summary: Flametail's death through Jayfeather's POV One-shot


**Here's my version of what happened when Flametail died through Jayfeather's POV. I've had this on my laptop for ages and I haven't read Sign of the Moon yet because I'm waiting for it to get here in the mail because the only Warrior books you can get here are all the none hard covered books -_- so this could be completely wrong. It's not very good but this didn't take very long to write.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors or any of the characters. They all belong to Erin Hunter**

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><p>A chilly wind from the lake froze the hearts of the cats living around it. Each clan had heard the yowling from the middle of the lake that day. Windclan had watched from the open moor and their camp, able to see the entire lake and the other territories. A few Riverclan hunters had stood frozen at the shoreline where they had made a hole in the ice to fish through. The Thunderclan medicine cat and his helper, Brightheart, had been trying to find herbs that normally grew on the shore when they had first noticed something was wrong. Some young Shadowclan cats had been on the frozen lake itself and this is where tragedy had struck.<p>

A loud crack sounded from part of the lake closest to the Shadowclan cats and instantly agonised wailing sounded. Jayfeather turned his blind eyes towards the sound, fear shooting through him as he caught one of the cats yowling another cat's name, though he wasn't close enough to hear who they were calling to. He scented the air and the crisp air revealed to him which cat scent was missing.

"No," he cried before turning to Brightheart, who was staring with horror at the Shadowclan cats. "Flametail's fallen through the ice, get Leafpool and any other cat you can find."

The ginger and white warrior bristled and ran towards camp as fast as she could. The young grey tabby could only hope she'd be able to find them in time. He paused for a heart beat on the side of the lake. Wouldn't Starclan be angry if he tried to help Flametail now that they had made it clear each clan must survive alone for any clan to make it out of the darkness? But he couldn't just stand here and watch a cat he had considered a friend die, he wasn't a Riverclan cat but despite that and being blind he knew how to swim.

Making his decision he jumped out onto the ice, listening to the other cats for guidance on where the hole was.

"Jayfeather?" He heard one of them mew in surprise as he disappeared into the hole.

The cold hit him painfully and he forced himself not to panic as water surrounded him. He hated the water ever since he was a kit. He could feel ripples in the water as if a large fish was struggling and swam towards it, hitting it with his paws suddenly. Jayfeather could feel fur and opened his mouth to get a grip on the ginger medicine cat's scruff. Only then did he realise that he wouldn't be able to swim with such a large dead weight in his mouth.

_This must be the first time I wished I was a Riverclan cat._

He continued to struggle until he opened his eyes and could see. Rock was flooding just above them, his white sightless eyes gazing at the two of them in sadness. The hairless cat reached a single paw towards Jayfeather.

_Let him go!_

The Thunderclan medicine cat wanted to wail in frustration. He couldn't just let Flametail drown.

_It is his time to die, not yours. Let him go!_

Exhausted he finally let the young cat go and could only watch as he sunk to the bottom of the lake and closed his eyes forever.

_Go now Jay Wings or you won't make it anyway!_

Rock guided him to the hole in the ice and he erupted out of the water, gasping for air and wincing as the bitter cold burned his lungs. He flailed in the water trying to get hold of the edge and was relieved when he felt another cat help pull him out.

"Jayfeather, what happened to Flametail?"

"I was too late to save him," he mewed softly, surprised to feel both horror and shame coming from the Shadowclan cats.

Jayfeather looked into Antpelt's mind. They were ashamed because they hadn't gone in after their medicine cat, instead a blind cat from another clan had gone into the ice covered water to try and save their clan mate. That and it had been their idea to play on the lake.

"We didn't think the ice would break," an apprentice that Jayfeather didn't know wailed.

"Every cat should know ice isn't safe to play on," the grey medicine cat hissed and then added more gently. "You'd better get back to your camp to let the rest of the clan know."

He stood there as the other cats walked away, imagining their heads and tails drooping, before turning to his own territory and carefully making his way back to the lake shore. He was half way there when he picked up the scent of Leafpool and Brambleclaw. They must have just arrived at the edge of the trees.

He was swept away at the strength of Leafpool's emotions, she was so worried and the feelings intensified the moment she noticed he was soaking wet. He shivered even more than he had been already, almost frozen to the ice. So when she offered to help him back to camp he didn't protest.

"What happened?" Brambleclaw asked, concern coming off him in waves.

In his mind he was picturing Flametail and then his sister Tawnypelt. Brambleclaw would take this news hard because the young medicine cat was his kin.

"Flametail and some other mouse brained young cats were playing on the ice, it broke under him. I..I jumped in to try and get him but he was too heavy. I had to let go, I'm sorry."

Grief gripped him as painfully as the cold water had done, just as he had predicted. _It must be hard to know all your kin is in another clan_. Even Leafpool had tensed beside him looking horrified.

"It's not your fault Jayfeather, you could easily have been lost too," the deputy mewed sounding distant. "I'm sure Flametail will be honoured in Starclan."

Jayfeather padded after the two warriors, guilt prickling his frozen paws. What if he'd been faster or stronger or not blind? Would he have been able to save Flametail then?

When they finally arrived at camp most of the cats were crowded around Brightheart asking what was happening by the lake.

"Flametail's dead," Brambleclaw announced as he walked into camp.

A shocked silence instantly took over the clearing and all the cats looked at each other in disbelief. Jayfeather scented Firestar and Sandstorm coming through the camp entrance with prey and heard them pause.

"What's happened? Jayfeather why are you soaking?"

"Wait, he needs some herbs before anything else happens," Leafpool hissed. "We can't get our medicine cat getting sick."

"You're right," Firestar mewed to his daughter. "Take him to his den and get him warm, I'll be there in a few heart beats."

Jayfeather barely registered as he was led to the den and made to sit down in his nest. Pricking his ears he could hear desperate wails from the other cats and the calmer mews of Brambleclaw and Firestar.

"Eat these," Leafpool mewed softly beside him, making him jump slightly.

The young tom ate them without question and curled up in his nest. Would he meet Flametail in Starclan? What could he possibly say to the other medicine cat now?

He purred slightly as he felt his mother's tongue stroke his back, warming him and making him feel like a kit again. _But she wasn't my mother when I was a kit! _He looked up at the den entrance when he heard the brambles shift.

"Is Flametail really dead?"

Jayfeather nodded. "He fell through the ice. I tried to save him but it was too late."

"I'm proud of you for trying," Firestar mewed sadly. "Sometimes no cat can do anything when Starclan calls."

Is that was this was? Was Starclan weakening Shadowclan by taking away their future medicine cat when Littlecloud was close to retirement? No, not even after knowing that Starclan was trying to separate the clans would he believe they'd purposely take away Flametail's life. It was an accident and not even Starclan could prevent it from happening.

_But I'm more powerful than Starclan! Apparently that wasn't enough._

"No, sometimes not even Starclan can help the cats below," he whispered, thinking of the darkness and war to come.


End file.
